If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Tharor's Dramon Destroyers crashed hard against the fiery sword of the Slayerdramon. Sparks rained out from the clashing of metal and showered both fighters, but the two dragon men paid the sparks no heed as they set the air ablaze. With a roar, Tharor hurled the Slayerdramon away and into the wall behind it. The WarGreymon charged it with claws drawn back and poised for the kill, but Slayerdramon leaped up and took to the air, and Tharor crashed into the wall. Tharor glared at the dragon knight and shot up after it.

"Dragon Crusher!" he called out as he felt power build within his gauntlets. He surged forward and swung his claws, intent on a killing blow.

"Sky Dragon Slash!" said the Slayerdramon as he swung his sword down to intercept Tharor's charge.

Claw met sword, and a concussive blast of heat and force ripped out from the impact point. Tharor was thrown back to the ground. He recovered his senses in time to dodge the Slayerdramon's downward strike; he flipped backward and put some distance between himself and his opponent.

Ajax leapt back to avoid the stabbing lance of Examon and swung his own weapon, the diabolic Dunas, to cleave through the dragon's head. But Examon's wings reacted to the situation and pulled together to protect him; Ajax's weapon struck the Chrome Digizoid wings and rebounded off them. Examon retaliated, swinging his lance and catching Ajax on the side. Ajax was tossed through the air and landed roughly on the stone floor.

"Damn," Ajax hissed, pushing through the pain as he rolled to his feet. He glanced up to find Examon charging towards him, already in the midst of his Dragonic Impact charge attack. "Rage of Wyvern!" Ajax yelled, swinging his pole axe and sending a dragon-headed blast of energy towards Examon.

But without even losing stride, Examon's wings closed around him and Ajax's attack fizzled out. Ajax could only brace himself in preparation for the incoming attack. Examon struck him hard, but Ajax absorbed some of the impact with his weapon's shaft and allowed himself to be carried through the air by the charging dragon knight. Ajax then rolled on top of the flying dragon and vaulted over him. He landed on the ground and raised his pole axe. The Examon stopped his flight and spun around to face Ajax again.

"Final Crest!" he shouted; a bolt of energy exploded from the weapon's head and crashed into Examon, whose defenses raised just an instant too slow. The attack plowed into Examon and sent him crashing across the throne room.

Examon rose to his feet and roared his fury. But Ajax just laughed under his breath and twirled the Dunas skillfully. Examon charged Ajax in a rage, but was struck by a twisting black tornado and knocked down. Oberon's claws glinted in the dim light, and the BlackWarGreymon surged forward. He raked his claws across Examon's midsection. Examon's wings attempted to protect him, but Oberon's claws allowed him to cut right through the dragon's defenses.

Ajax nodded to Oberon, and the two prepared to face the Examon together, as a united front.

"King Lion!" Goliath roared. His katana burst into flames and he charged Imego. When he was close, he leapt into the air and slashed downwards with all the power he could muster, attempting to break straight through the paladin's defenses and cut him in two.

But Goliath's attack was terminated abruptly. Imego simply rasied his own sword and casually stopped the strike. Goliath's eyes widened in shock as the true scope of Imego's new power became apparent.

"Omni Sword," Imego said calmly with their swords still locked. He slashed his sword, drawing it against Goliath's own. The sheer power unleashed by the attack broke Goliath's katana into a thousand tiny pieces and completely atomized his gakuran. In fact, if it were not for the gakuran's defensive properties, Goliath himself would have undoubtedly been consumed by the power and killed.

Goliath was hurled across the room by the enormous cascade of energy. Imego, sure of his victory paid no more attention to the rebel commander, and instead turned to attack the rest of the rebel strike force. But Goliath wasn't finished.

"Flash Bancho Punch!" he roared. He exploded forward and landed a powerful punch to Imego's face. The dragon paladin stumbled back, and Goliath launched another punch, only for Imego to catch his fist easily with his left hand. He squeezed Goliath's fist, and Goliath crumpled to his knees in pain.

"Interesting," Imego mused. "Even after I defeated you with a single attack, you believed you could best me...why? Where do you get the nerve to believe such a thing?" Imego didn't let Goliath reply, for before he could, the dragon paladin kicked him in the chest and sent him flying through the air and crashing through the wall behind him.

Ajax and Oberon saw Goliath's plight.

"Go help," Oberon ordered Ajax. "I'll deal with this one and be there in a minute." Ajax nodded once and sprinted off towards Imego. Examon moved to stop him, but Oberon slammed into the red dragon, allowing Ajax to run to their commander's aid.

"Rage of Wyvern!" Ajax yelled as he ran. He launched his dragon-shaped energy blast towards Imego, who simply braced himself and took the entire attack with just the slightest flinch. The great dragon looked around for Ajax, but he was nowhere to be seen.

"Final Crest!"

Imego glanced up and behind him to see Ajax fly through the air and fire off the bolt of power from his weapon. But Imego wasn't very concerned: he simply raised his hand and caught the bolt as it flew towards him. He held it at bay until it fizzled out. Ajax stared at Imego in disbelief, but readied his weapon and charged.

Ajax attacked with a flurry of strikes, spinning and slashing in rapid succession, trying to overcome--or find a break in--Imego's defenses. But Imego's defenses held, and he blocked every one of Ajax's strikes. So the knight decided to try something else; he swung his pole axe in a horizontal thrusting motion towards Imego's head. But the draconic paladin easily intercepted the strike, catching the pole axe's head with his sword. Then, before Ajax had the chance to realize what had transpired, Imego grabbed him by his armor and hurled him through the air. Ajax hit the ground hard and skidded to a stop as his armor sent sparks flying.

Imego glanced down to the Dunas where Ajax had dropped it, then casually kicked it over to its owner. The great paladin then spread his wings, lifted into the air, and charged Ajax; he flew just above the ground with his sword drawn for a killing stroke.

But Ajax ducked underneath the strike, and unleashed his Final Crest attack from point blank range into Imego's chest. Imego took the full attack, the force of which sent him backwards through the air. However, Imego merely had to spread his silver wings to stop his flight, and aside from a few scuff marks on his armor, he was relatively unharmed.

He was, however, quite angry. Imego charged Ajax in a rage and brought his sword crashing down on the knight. Ajax attempted to block the strike with the shaft of his weapon, but Imego's blade clove right through it. Ajax leapt back in shock, but had no time to contemplate what happened, as Imego was upon him once again. Feuled by instinct and training, Ajax used the two halves of his weapon to parry and block Imego's blows. Ajax was suddenly struck by such a blow that--even blocked--he was lifted off his feet and hurled through the air. Imego continued his relentless assault and rushed Ajax once again, but this time Ajax was ready.

As Imego neared, Ajax hurled the back half of his weapon. The spear point lodged in Imego's left shoulder, and the paladin reeled back in pain, ceasing his attack abruptly. He savagely ripped the spear from his shoulder and tossed it to the ground. Then, when he went to turn his rage on Ajax, Imego caught a face-full of his Rage of Wyvern attack and was knocked across the room.

Ajax stood hunched, breathing heavily, as the smoke and dust settled. Imego's power was immense; Ajax had never faced an opponent who could survive so many direct attacks without even trying to defend himself. When the smoke cleared, Ajax was shocked to find Imego still standing, looking no the worse for wear. The white-armored dragon began his slow advance.

"This is insane," Ajax growled. "How is he still standing?" Ajax tossed the other half of his broken weapon away and prepared himself. "Slide Evolution...Gallantmon X!" Ajax was suddenly surrounded by a field of glowing 1's and 0's. They swirled around him and through him, causing his armor to change: it became sharper and more angular--more powerful as well. The 1's and 0's formed around his hands, creating the mighty Aegis shield, and the handle for his beam lance Gram. Ajax brought shield and lance to bear, and the lance's blade hummed to life as a glowing cone of blue energy.

Imego wasn't impressed and charged forward. Ajax answered his charge, and Omni Sword met Aegis Shield. Ajax struggled against Imego's overwhelming strength; Imego had more physical power than Ajax could hope to muster. But he didn't have the skill.

Ajax adjusted his stance, shifting his balance and causing Imego to stumble forward. In the same instant, Ajax slashed his lance against Imego's side. Imego faltered for a moment, and Ajax attacked. He attacked relentlessly, stabbing and slashing with the Gram lance. He scored several good hits, surprising Imego with his ability to penetrate his guard.

But Imego wasn't willing to let that stand. He swung the Omni Sword with all his might and it crashed against Ajax's shield. The force of the blow knocked Ajax backwards and Imego brought his sword up to attack again.

"Lightning Joust!" Ajax cried out. The Gram blade suddenly extended to several times its length and struck Imego's wrist, causing the white dragon to lose his grip on the Omni Sword. "Victory Saber!" Ajax attacked. He stabbed and slashed with his lance, scoring several deep hits to Imego's less armored areas.

Ajax leapt to attack his unarmed opponent again, but Imego swiftly grabbed both of Ajax's arms and pinned them to his side before ramming his head into Ajax's head. He then kneed Ajax in the midsection.

"Imperial Claw!" Imego shouted as he tore into Ajax with the glowing claws on his armor. He didn't distinguish between light and heavy armor: Imego's attacks were powerful enough to cause damage no matter what stood in their way. "Imperial Kick!" A sudden kick knocked the wind out of Ajax and he tumbled through the air.

Imego raised his right hand, and the Omni Sword flew into his grasp.

"Fine," Ajax hissed as he winced in pain. "You asked for it." Ajax deactivated his beam lance and placed the Aegis shield in front of him pointed towards Imego. Power began to build within the glowing crystalline center of the shield, and the entire shield shook violently as the power built to critical mass. "Shield of the Just!" Ajax howled.

An enormous wave of holy energy seared from the Aegis shield and crashed into the advancing Imego with terrific force. Imego strained against the sheer power of Ajax's attack, he struggled to keep his footing as the beam halted his advance. The power threatened to overwhelm Imego, and finally knocked him from his feet. No longer restrained by Imego, the power carried him through the air and slammed him against the wall. The attack continued, battering Imego through several other walls before finally ending with a massive explosion that rocked the entire palace.

Ajax let his shield slump to the ground and he leaned against it, breathing heavily. He had put every ounce of power into that attack, hoping that it would at least put Imego down for the count. Ajax's hopes were dashed as Imego climbed back through the holes he had punched in the walls as the attack carried him.

"My turn," Imego said with a smirk. He raised the Omni Sword and pointed it towards Ajax as power built around the sword's point, forming a glowing sphere of white and purple. "Positron Laser!" Imego shouted. A great beam of energy ripped from the sword's point and crashed towards Ajax, who just managed to raise his shield in time to block the attack. The force of the beam lifted Ajax off his feet and carried him through the air. Only his quick thinking and repositioning of his shield so that the beam pushed him out of its path saved him from being splattered all over the walls...

=====

The Examon made one final attempt to drive his lance into Oberon, but the BlackWarGreymon slashed his claws and cut the weapon into several pieces. The red dragon fell back in surprise, and Oberon exploded forward.

"Black Tornado-Dragon Crusher!" he roared. He rotated at a tremendous velocity and tore towards Examon. His claws shred through the dragon's wings as they attempted to protect him, and then Oberon impaled the red dragon with his claws. The dragon seized up before finally dissipating in a storm of data particles.

Oberon glanced around and saw Ajax receive the Positron Laser attack from Imego. He noticed how worn and beaten the Gallantmon looked, and knew he had reached his limit.

"Terra Force!" Tharor called out. The mass of fiery energy crashed into Slayerdramon and knocked him through the air and into the nearest wall. The chrome-armored dragon was then buried by several tons of rubble and debris.

"Tharor," Oberon called out. "Leave him; I need your help."

Tharor glanced over to the pile of rubble for a moment to make sure that Slayerdramon didn't rise. When he was satisfied that the dragon was down, Tharor flew to Oberon's side, and the two WarGreymon rushed towards Imego. Oberon reached him first and stabbed with his claws, but Imego's fingers slipped between the claws and he caught the strike with the barest effort. He raised his sword to deliver a killing blow, but Tharor arrived just in time to hold the weapon at bay by crossing his claws against it. Imego snarled and lashed out with two split-second kicks that sent both WarGreymon flying.

Oberon and Tharor recovered quickly, however, and prepared to attack again; they surged forward, attacking with simultaneous Dragon Crushers. Their claws struck Imego hard, but caused less damage than they hoped for; Imego's new power gave him the ability to withstand even their specialized killing techniques. They'd have to find a new tactic.

Terra Force and Terra Destroyer fired simultaneously, and the twin fireballs completely engulfed Imego in an inferno of burning energies. But as the fires died down, the two WarGreymon were shocked to find Imego still standing; charred, but relatively unhurt.

"Great Tornado!" Tharor called out; he tore through the air towards Imego, but the great paladin simply slashed his sword at the oncoming tornado and the collision of energies sent Tharor flying through the air.

"Damn," Oberon cursed. He charged forward. Imego was unconcerned.

The mouth of the dragon head on Imego's chest opened, and the positron cannon emerged. Power began to build within the cannon and quickly reached peak levels.

"Giga Crusher!" Imego roared. Power exploded from the cannon searing a line of fire through the air. Oberon just barely managed to bring up his Brave Shield to block the attack, but even that hardly served to slow it down. It slammed into Oberon's shield and forced the BlackWarGreymon back. Suddenly, the power overcame the limits of the Brave Shield. The shield shattered and Imego's attack plowed into Oberon. He was engulfed by the energy of the attack and sent flying through the walls of the palace.

Imego laughed loudly, reveling in his victory. Oberon and Goliath were both incapacitated, Ajax was completely drained, and Tharor alone was no match for Imego's new level of power. The "Ultimate Paladin" of the Dramon Empire slowly advanced towards his prey...

=====

Jager waited until his armaments had fully reloaded before calling Osiris and Strom back. He strode forward and braced himself to prepare for the recoil. He set his sights throughout the capital city. It was by chance that he chose to glance at the dome of the imperial palace, but he did, and peered through the holes that had been blown in the dome. Jager's vision zoomed in and he caught sight of Imego decimating the rebel team.

He realized that the mission had been botched.

"Something's wrong," he announced. "They're in trouble; they need help!" Jager fired several cannon blasts throughout the rest of the city in one final attempt to confuse the Dramon Army. He then slid into his faster MetalGarurumon form and launched himself into the sky. He raced towards the palace and hoped he wasn't too late.

Gapsar, leaned against his Sword, now dug into the Tiles of the Throne Room, as the smoke from the Explosion cleared. At least he was better off than the DORUGoramon, who, while still keeping form, was crushed under, Debris and Rubble that had fallen from the roof. Gapsar's power was draining, the Gaia Reactor attack, he had let too much power loose. His, mind, was like whirlpool in the net ocean, just spinning and blurred.

Yet, with the Sword in his hand, the Gaiomon raised it above the DORUGoramon under the rock.
"NO!" the DORUmon mega screeched, as the Kiku Rin plunged into the Beast Beast Dragon's head. Gapsar laughed a bit, as his mind faded away more and more, he was be knocked out, and become dead meat for the remaining Dragon Knights. Yet, the young Dragon Man looked up and saw something that egged him, General Imego, Advancing to kill Tharor,
"No!" The Samurai murmured, he tried making a Bow and Arrow to strike the Paladin Admiral, but to no avail, he was too weak to fashion one. However, if there was one thing Gapsar learned from the Sovereignty it's that you always, always protect your higher ups. So, using the last of his Strength, Gapsar threw one of his Kiku Rin at Imego, then, the blackness Closed in, and the Gaiomon De-Digivolved back to Tuskmon, and fainted.

Strom ceased his Sonic Slash Rain attack and glanced over to Jager, who flew off. He then hopped back up onto the fallen tree trunk. The Spinomon looked over at the grand, fiery city and growled. "I wonder if that traitor, Ranney, is in there..." he muttered quietly... for a Spinomon.

Strom stood tall, not worried about return fire since the city and defences were probably in chaos, and watched as Jager flew towards the palace. He then turned and looked at Osiris and Rai.

"Uhh... should we follow him? It's not exactly going to be easy for three digimon incapable of-" he cut himself off as he noticed that both the Anubismon and the Rapidmon were capable of flight. "Okay- it's not exactly going to be easy for ME to get into the city. I don't think that you two have the might to fly me in..." he said, rather self-consciously. "The defences may be weakened, but I'm still a sitting duck outside of those massive walls for any dramon still on the parapets."

He sat on the log and watched. "He didn't exactly say for us to follow, though..."

Ragna stopped his wild charge and looked at Imego with horror. The powerful dragon had single handedly defeated four of the Rebellions most powerful warriors.

"Karasu will have to handle UlforceVeedramon alone," he said "Imego needs distracting. Maybe this will work. Breath Of Wyvern!" He felt energy well up inside him, more than he had ever used. Then he released the energy dragon, this time a much bigger one. Imego stopped and turned. The Breath Of Wyvern impacted and Ragna waited to hear the sound of a wall breaking, or maybe the crack of broken bones. Instead his attack parted, revealing the smiling paladin.

"Pathetic," Imego laughed "absolutely pathetic. This is power, foolish Dynasmon. Positron Laser!" He ponted his right arm at Ragna and sent a lance of energy hurtling into the Dynasmon. Ragna impacted with a wall heavily and broke through it. Imego stepped into the dead center of the room and slowly turned.

"Who to finish first?" he said "to be honest, I expected more from the Rebels. But, powerful soldiers are a rarity outside the empire. And I see two dragons standing with you. How sad."

"Shut it shiny," Ragna growled, emerging through the wall "you might be stronger than us. You might have just knocked me through a wall. But never, ever, call warriors fighting for freedom sad."

"Be silent!" Imego roared.

"I'm not one of your Sky Force," Ragna said "I don't answer to you, or any other stinking Dramon. Not even the Three Great Dramon, who you tidily packed out of the way. But why Imego? Personal loyalty?"

"Amemit!" Osiris yelled, thrusting out his hand. A golden outline of some creature burst out of him and slammed into Imego, holding the paladin with his back to Ragna.

"Dragon's Gust !" Ragna yelled, hurling himself forwards and slashing his now glowing claws across Imego's back. The paladin screamed in rage.

"How dare you attack me!" he screamed "I am the High Admiral of the Dramon Empire! You are nothing! Hyper Prominence!" Energy lanced from Imego's body, hurling Ragna back through the wall and destroying Amemit. Everythign was getting worse for the attack team...

Hundreds of missiles rocketed at Imego within seconds. One by one, each missile met its target, completely concealing the entire battlefield in a dense smog. As the smoke and debris cleared, Rai stared on in horror. Imego remained untouched by the projectiles. With his Omni Sword he had deflected each one with ease. "Man, this guy gets on my nerves..." Rai mumbled.

------------

Karasu's killer claws struck UlForceVeedramon with a lethal blow, tearing apart his data within a matter of movements. With one final slash through the chest, Karasu's opponent vanished in a thick cloud of data.

Turning his head to the next battle, Karasu perceived the other Rebels fearlessly fighting to defeat Imego. In the blink of an eye, Karasu was beside the startled, young Rapidmon.

"Heh. What took ya so long?" Rai inquired, preparing another barrage of missiles.

"I had a little...obstacle...to overcome," Karasu replied, "Are you ready?"

"I'm always ready."

"Then let's go!"

With that, the two Digimon hurled themselves with lightning speed toward the Imperialdramon, prepared to do or die. However, Imego anticipated their movements and, with just one movement of the arm, had dispatched them with ease. The two Digimon crashed into the wall.

Strom sighed as he watched the others fly off. "Terrific, thanks," he grumbled.

Without a second thought, he started charging down the mountain towards the front gate. As soon as he clumsily sprinted to a relatively close proximity to the gate, he got down on all fours, tucked his head in and began crawling in a turtle-like fashion. He hoped that any ranged attacks firing down on him would harmlessly hit his spikes.

"If a Pteramon was here, he would gladly lift me over the wall, but nooooo, I get stuck with a bunch of weak, self-serving, glory-seeking rebels. Here I am risking my long neck to help them, when they wouldn't do the same for me. Why do you do these things, Strom?" he softly growled to himself as he approached the gate.

He opened up his mouth from his defensive stance and aimed towards the gate. "Blue Prominence!" he roared. He fired a blue beam from his mouth which impacted the gate, blowing a firey hole through it.

"At this point, there's really no good tactic, so might as well take a page from those gung ho rebels and..." Strom stood up and burst through the small hole in the gate, taking some pieces of charred wood with him. He looked up to wear the dome was and started running as fast as he could in that direction. The Spinomon stormed down the street and found himself faced with a platoon of Commandramon.

"Halt!" one of them ordered, obviously scared out of his wits.

Strom grunted and lunged over them, not wanting to kill any. He heard a sigh of relief from behind him and continued to charge the palace. The Spinomon walked through a very conveniant hole in the wall, walked down the hall a bit and walked through another large hole, into the throne room.

He saw most of the rebels either unconscious or badly wounded. Strom was one of the only ones still standing. He looked around at the carnage, folded his arms, and sighed. "This is what happens when you go charging in!!"

He eyed Imego and growled. "Blue Prominence!" Again he fired a massive beam of blue, superheated plasma. Imego merely grinned and vertically brought down his sword. He effortlessly parted the beam, which harmlessly ricocheted to his sides.

Strom recoiled and started scratching his chin in thought. "Hmm, that didn't work. My Sonic Slash Rain is no match for his armour either... There's gotta be some other way..."

Strom was either too calm for his own good, slightly nuts, or not the smartest tool in the shed, because he continued standing in that thinking pose, oblivious to what Imego might be doing.

Ragna stepped through the wall for the second time. He quickly noticed Strom standing still with Imego approaching the Spinomon.

"Strom, move!" he yelled "Dragon's Gust!" he hurled himself forwards and slashed his claws towards Imego. The paladin moved slightly and caught he Dynasmon's wrist. Ragna tried to slash with the other hand, but Imego simply hurled him away.

"You are pathetic," the Imperialdramon hissed "you aren't even worthy of joining this glorious empire. My glorious empire." Ragna stopped struggling to his feet for a second.

"Your empire?" he quesioned "what about the Three Great Dramon? Unless..." Then it hit him.

"All of this, the Paladin Mode, getting them out of the way," Ragna said "its just to give you a chance to become leader of the Dramon Empire, isn't it?"

"Do you know what those three fat, lasy fools are like?" Imego hissed angrily "they sit in the lap of luxury, while me and Daehak slave away to keep them safe. If they are so powerful, why don't they fight?"

"Theres a reason they have an army, you know," Osiris said. Imego ignored him.

"But if I ruled," he spoke "the Dramon Empire could be so much more..."

"I've heard enough," Ragna said "Breath Of Wyvern!" He put all of his energy into the attack, trying to finish Imego as best he could. The giant energy dragon soared into the paladin. Imego pressed against it, slowly pushing the attack away. But he was open...

"Amulet Of The Ancients!" Osiris cried. A crystal being appeared in front of him and fired a ray of intense light into Imego's back. The paladin screamerd in rage and pain as the attack managed to hit a weak spot in his armor.

"No more restraint!" Imego screamed, lunging at Osiris and grabbing the Anubismon. He rapidly flew up before dropping Osiris.

"Giga Crusher!" the enraged paladin screamed. The dragon head on his chest opened, revealing a twisting sphere of energy. A blast of sheer power lanced from Imego into Osiris, hurling the Anubismon into the floor and through it. A look of worry appeared
on Imego's face.

"Osiris!" Ragna called. Osiris slowly opened his eyes. His chest was burnt from the attack and his skin was cut in places, but apart from that he was relatively unhurt. He looked around.

Then he saw the four statues.

"The Digimon Sovereigns," he whispered in awe "they have the Digimon Sovereigns right here."

"And you won't be alive long enough to free them!" Imego snarled, shooting through the ceiling like a meteor "Positron Laser!" He pointed his arm at Osiris and charged a blast of energy that would kill the Anubismon. Suddenly he was hit by Ragna, throwing off his aim. The Positron Laser impacted with a wall.

"Osiris, get the others and go!" Ragna ordered "this isn't working! You have to get out now, I'll hold Imego off!"

"Not a chance!" Osiris yelled back "we have to take him down! I'll leave when Imego is dead on the floor and the Sovereigns are free!"

"So be it!" Ragna said "we aren't leaving till the missions done!"

"You're not leaving period!" Imego snarled "Hyper Prominence!" Energy lanced from every gunport on his body, hurling Ragna into the wall and crushing Osiris against the stone Zhuqiaomon.

"This is the end of the line!" Imego announced, drawing his Omni Sword to finish it...

The Darkdramon stared at Karmas before he went to stab him again. But the Vikemon managed to role out of the way.

"Arctic Blizzard!" roared Karmas.

The Darkdramon looked in astonishment as as the blizzard hammered his body.

"Take that you piece of scum!" spat out Karmas as he kept the blizzard up until he could do no more.

"Please that was nothing," said the Darkdramon, striking down Karmas as he did so.

The Darkdramon closed his eyes and started to charge his 'Dark Roar' attack when he felt something large slice right through his partially frozen mid section. He looked up and saw a panting Karmas holding both his axes, even though he was wounded.

"VIKING AXE!" roared Karmas as he brought down his axes and cut through the Darkdramon's head.

As the body deteriorated into data Karmas turned his attention towards Imego, who was being combated by a couple of the rebels.

"Arctic Blizzard!" yelled Karmas as he sent a blizzard Imego's way.

However Imego wasn't affected by it in any way. But the attack did gain his attention.

"Positron Laser," said Imego as he lifted one of his arms.

A beam of energy shot out and slammed into Karmas, sending him into and through a wall. The wall fell down onto Karmas and buried him, forcing him to de-digivolve into Zudomon.

Rai stumbled up. Turning his head partially to either side, he perceived that most of his fellow Rebels had already been defeated or were on the verge. Reaching over, cautiously, so as not to attract Imego's attention, Rai gave Karasu a shove, causing the bird Digimon to awaken.

(Uh, Imego should be down in the prison room, fighting Ragna and Osiris. But I guess he could have already beaten them.)
Ragna struggled into conciousness. Hs whole body ached from the heavy impact with the wall and the following fall to the floor.

"Osiris?" he called, looking around. Then he saw the Anubismon. Osiris was lying on the ground in front of the Zhuqiaomon statue. His body was cut and burnt, and Ragna was pretty sure that arms didn't bend that way.

"Oh great," Ragna muttered, stealing a nervous glance towards the ceiling to make sure that Imego wasn't coming back. Luckily, the paladin seemed occupied. The Dynasmon moved over to Osiris.

"Come on," Ragna said "we have a promise to keep." Osiris' eyes opened and he looked at Ragna.

"Who said I was breaking that promise?" he replied. Ragna smiled.

"I can't fight any more," he said "Imego is just too strong, even for Tharor and Oberon together."

"Never, never, never give up," Osiris said "we can beat him."

"Maybe you could..." Ragna spoke. Then he realised how.

"Osiris, if I give you my energy, you might Digivolve," Ragna said "then you could take him on."

"Try it," Osiris said. Ragna breathed deeply and a stream of energy flew from his hands into Osiris. The Anubismon stood, his injuries healing as the data repaired him.

"Do it!" Ragna yelled "I can't give you much more!" Osiris felt more energy than Ragna could possibly give him flow through his system.

"Anubismon!" he cried as a pillar of rainbow light shot down from above and surrounded him. Osiris watched as the Digi-Core he had taken from the temple all that time ago appeared before him. The Digi-Core glowed black before flowing into his body.

"Ancient Evolution!" Osiris screamed "AncientSphinxmon!" The pillar of light shattered like glass, revealing Osiris. He was now a black and gold armored sphinx with golden wings rising above his body. His eyes were ruby red and his face was silver. Ragna groaned and collapsed, his body glowing and splitting into two Digimon, one like a black demon, the other like a cat with wings sprouting from its arms. Osiris didn't notice them. His eyes were on Imego.

"Heh...alright, so here's the plan..." Rai muttered, crouching toward Strom, signaling for the larger Digimon to bend over, "Imego's too tough for us to take on without some kind of strategy...do you think you have enough strength to send out two consecutive Sonic Slash Rain's, so I can get close enough to that bleached oaf to hit him?"

Without waiting for a response, Rai continued, "Then, once I've got him within my scopes, I'll fire all I've got at him. While he's busy trying to block that, Karasu, you will need to move in and give him some heavy damage while Strom is building up energy for his Blue Prominence."

Karasu nodded. "Got it," he said.

"Alright, then let's go--"

Suddenly, from another room, there came a loud cry. "AncientSphinxmon!" it screamed.

"Hm...looks like Osiris has Digivolved..." Karasu mumbled.

"Heh...good. He can help you distract Imego while Strom's building up his finishing attack. Go tell him the plan!" Rai exclaimed.

In the blink of an eye, Karasu was beside the AncientSphinxmon. Keeping his voice low, Karasu explained everything to the large Digimon.

Osiris prepared to launch his attacks at Imego, while the paladin was distracted by Strom.

"Dark Blast!" he roared, rearing up on his hind legs before crashign back down and sending an orb of darkness firing into Imego's back. The paladin screamed in rage and pain as the attack pushed him forwards.

"Necro Eclipse!" Osiris countered. Two beams of light shot from his ruby eyes, colliding with the Positron Laser and causing a massive explosion. Osiris waited a second, then Imego emerged through the smoke, wielding his Omni Sword.

"Necro Eclipse!" Osiris yelled, sending two more jets of ruby light into Imego and pushing the paladin to the ground "Dark Blast!" He reare dup and crashed down, hittign Imego with another powerful black orb. The paladin was unceremoniously hurled towards Rai and Karasu...

"Metal Wolf Claw!" Jager howled. A stream of super-cold nitrous blasted from his mouth, engulfing Imego in a cascade of ice. Tharor acted quickly and drove his shoulder into Imego and sent him flying through the air. The paladin crashed against the nearby wall and the rest of the ice shattered.

Imego roared and took off after Jager. The metal wolf let loose with another stream of ice, but Imego just sliced through it with his sword and continued his attack. His blade slashed just passed above Jager, who ducked out of the way in the nick of time. Tharor flew to help, sliding into his VictoryGreymon form. He lashed out with the Dramon Breaker, locking swords. But Imego proved greater power and pushed Tharor away with ease.

Jager slid into his Z'dGarurumon form and fired off a trio of cannon blasts that impacted Imego from point blank range. The force of the explosions threw Imego back, but he was relatively uninjured.

Tharor called out a rallying cry to Ajax and he led the sword-wielders in a blitz attack. Their strikes were relentless: the two let loose with a dizzying display of swordsmanship that would have left a lesser opponent...well...dizzy. But Imego was no lesser opponent. He powered through, blocking or evading every slash and every stab. Imego then swung his sword, and the overwhelming burst of energies threw them to the ground.

Imego then turned to the rest of the rebels, dispatching Rai and Karasu with a single swipe of his sword, knocked out Karmas and Gapsar, and completely decimated Osiris and Ragna. Jager let loose with his Full Metal Blaze, and while the attack managed to push Imego back, he remained unharmed by the mighty attack.

"Trident Gaia!"

"Z'd Cannon!"

The twin attacks struck Imego with tremendous force and finally succeeded in causing him to cry out in pain. In a rage, Imego fired his Hyper Prominence once again. Jager and Tharor managed to avoid the blasts, but the explosions from where they hit the ground and walls knocked the two warriors around.

But the great paladin was suddenly assaulted by Osiris in his AncientSphinxmon form. Jager glanced to Tharor and nodded; Osiris had the right idea. The two shed their accelerated forms, returning to WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon.

"Ancient Evolution!" They cried out in unison. A storm of data erupted around them; showering them with primordial energies that sought out powers hidden deep within them and brought that power to the surface. The two warriors assumed forms that reached the pinnacle of their species' capabilities. Jager gained powerful armor and a pair of mighty swords; his form shifted to allow for bipedal movement. Tharor gained thick red armor and fiery wings.

"AncientGarurumon!"

"AncientGreymon!"

The two Ancient Digimon rose up to stand with Osiris, who had also assumed an ancient-evolved form. Together, the three were an imposing force. But Imego was not impressed. He charged the three Digimon, blowing right past Tharor and Osiris and driving his sword towards Jager. But the ancient wolf brought the Sharpness Claymore swords up to block the strike with time to spare.

A sudden rain of blades from Strom struck Imego and forced him back again. Tharor took this opportunity to strike; he rammed his hard skull into Imego's midsection and sent the paladin flying backwards. Imego recovered quickly, but Jager sprung forward with his blades drawn.

"Sharpness Claymore!" Jager howled, slashing with both swords. But Imego was fast; fast enough to block both strikes and deliver a terribly powerful punch to Jager's face. He continued his attack, charging his Splendor Blade.

"Gaia Tornado!" A massive twister of condensed atmospheric energy erupted beneath Imego and captured him in its vortex. The twister picked Imego off his feet and hurled him into the air. Jager then struck with the Sharpness Claymore and slashed his blades across Imego's chest.

Imego was then attacked by Osiris, who seemed to match the paladin's attacks with his own and hurl him through the air towards Karasu and Rai.

"Let's finish this, Jager!" Tharor called out. He opened his great maw as power built within it. "Omega Corona!"

"Absolute Zero!" Jager roared.

The two attacks--fire and ice--ripped into Imego, freezing then searing his body and finally pelting it with shards of burning ice. Imego was thrown through the air as he cried out in pain and he slammed through a pair of walls.

"Insolent curs," Imego snarled. "You dare to stand against me? You will die!"

Imego drew the Omni Sword and charged Tharor and Jager. He swung the mighty blade, and though Jager managed to block the strike, the force of the swing knocked Jager away and sent him into the nearby wall. Tharor struck, rearing back to breath his Omega Corona, but Imego grabbed Tharor by the chin and kept the blast from hitting him. He then drew back the Omni Sword and stabbed it deep into Tharor's chest.

"Omni Sword," Imego said calmly. His weapon burst to light, and he slashed it from within Tharor. The energy cascade erupted from Tharor's chest and spewed outward. Tharor dropped to the ground as a storm of fractal code erupted from his body. He returned to his WarGreymon form as sparks danced across his body.

"No!" cried Jager. He charged Imego, but Imego simply thrust his sword behind him and skewered Jager as well.

"Omni Sword," he said again, and gave Jager much the same treatment as Tharor. Jager droppedto the ground and revereted to his MetalGarurumon form.

Something appeared wrong with the two wounded warriors; their digicores had been damaged and they were unable to drop to their lower forms to save their lives. They would either have to be brought back to the rebel stronghold, or they would die.

"Blue Prominence!!" Strom roared, firing a blue beam. Much like last time, it was parted and Imego remained untouched.

He growled and stomped the floor in frustration. "Damn!!!" Strom then looked around the throne room at all of the injured, Jager and Tharor in particular. "We have to fall back!!" he roared to the others. "We've got too many injured; fall back and regroup!!!"

For the sake of the badly beaten, he hoped his suggestion wouldn't fall on ears deaf with pride.

(Thank you. AncientGreymon and AncientGarurumon are two of my favorite Digimon and I could just imagine the three Ancient Digimon standing together.)
Osiris ignored Strom completely. Retreating wasn't an option.

"Here kitty kitty," Imego taunted. Osiris felt his rage build up.

"Necro Eclipse!" he screamed. Two jets fo ruby light shot from his eyes and struck the paladin, sending Imego skidding back across the floor.

"Are you ready to run like the scared cat you are?" Imego said "you might be one of the ancient warriors, but I'll kill you just as easily as those other two."

Imego continued to power through the rebel strike team. He had already mortally wounded Jager and Tharor, who lay on the verge of death. Osiris had been taken care of in a similar matter. Oberon had been beaten severelyl, Goliath was nowhere to be found after the beating he had received. Ragna, Karmas and Gapsar had been taken down and devolved as well, and Ajax--while still standing--was on the verge of collapsing. Only Rai, Karasu, and Strom were truly able to fight back.

But Imego was having none of that.

He surged into Karasu slashing with the Omni Sword. He failed to anticipate Karasu's speed, however, and his strike missed. But his follow-up punch hit home: Imego drove his fist hard into Karasu's face and knocked the raven warrior to the floor. Imego flew down after him, slammed him with a double-fisted hammer strike, and kicked him across the floor. Imego drew his sword again but noticed Rai on the attack. Imego swiveled around and backhanded the Rapidmon. Imego then turned to Strom and leveled his sword at the great dinosaur.

"Positron Laser!" he roared. A beam of power lanced from the point of the blade and slammed into the Spinomon's chest, sending him flying backwards into one of the walls. By this point, the throne room of the Three Great Dramon looked more like a battlefield than an elegant room for rules of an empire. Imego turned back to Karasu and raised the Omni Sword once more. He swung down with all his might.

Ajax leapt into the way and blocked the sword with his shield. The power from the strike rolled through Ajax's body and knocked him to his knees, but he still held strong, and pushed with all his might. Imego jumped back and prepared to strike again.

"Lightning Joust!" Ajax called out. He thrust forward with the Gram lance and a spike of lightning burst from its edges. It struck the Omni Sword and Imego fractured the attack with a swipe of the sword.

Little did Imego--or anyone else--know, but Ajax's attack had struck the digicore within the Omni Sword (that Imego had taken from Azulongmon) and created a small crack in the core.

Imego roared in anger and prepared to charge.

"Shield of the Just!" Ajax yelled. He fired his massive bolt of power; it streaked across the ground and headed straight for Imego.

"Omni Sword!" Imego roared. He swung his sword with all his might and crashed it against Ajax's attack. The two attacks collided and exploded in a violent display of power.

But the sudden backlash of energies was too much for the damaged digicore, and it shattered. With the power behind his evolution destroyed, Imego was forced to revert to his Fighter Mode.

"No!" he howled. He glanced at Ajax, who had dropped to his knees from exhaustion. The other rebels in the room were no longer a threat to him; they were too far weakened to cause him much harm. Even in his weaker form, Imego was confident of his ability to triumph.

"Fine," Imego snarled. "Giga Crusher." He grabbed his positron cannon and locked it into the dragon mouth on his chest. Power began to build within the cannon and it quickly reached critical mass.

"Black Tornado!" Oberon exploded from behind one of the walls and tore into Imego. His claws shred armor and flesh, cleaving straight through several data layers. The black dragon cried out in pain and crumpled to the ground.

"Get everyone out of here!" Oberon roared as he backed up. Imego struggled to his feet, but it was apparent that he would be unable to continue.

"We can beat him!" Ajax cried out.

"We don't have time!" Oberon hissed. "Daehak and the Army will be here any second now. We need to get back to the sewers. Someone take Jager and Tharor. Anyone who can move, move now!"

"You won't escape!" Imego howled. "Destroyers come forth!"

From somewhere deep within the palace, came the sound of powerful footsteps. Three forms suddenly burst into the ruined throne room. They were Imego's personal "Destroyers," Fuujinmon, Raijinmon, and Suijinmon. The three androids thundered towards the weakened rebels.

"No," snarled a voice. "I won't let you do this." Goliath slowly emerged from a pile of rubble; his body was alit with flame, signaling his change into Burst Mode. "Oberon, get everyone out of here. I'll take care of this."

"But Commander Goliath," Oberon began. "We won't leave you."

"That's an order!" Goliath roared. He then turned to the three Destroyers. "You want me?" he snarled. "You want these brave souls? You'll have to go through me!"

Goliath charged the three Destroyers with his fists aflame just as Oberon and the rest of the rebels dropped into the sewers. A great explosion rocked the stone foundations moments later. But the rebels couldn't stop to grieve, for moments later Daehak's troops broke into the sewers. Dozens of dragons poured into the tunnels after the rebels, and because they were so worn down, they were hard pressed to escape.

They'd be caught soon.

"Keep going," Oberon ordered Ajax. "I'll keep them busy for as long as I can."

"I won't allow you to sacrifice yourself as well," Ajax protested.

Oberon shook his head. "Goliath and I got you into this mess; we led you to your dooms. I won't allow you all to die. Not while I have a chance to stop it."

"But how can-?"

"Go!" Oberon ordered. He then turned to the incoming Dramon Army and began to glow. Data stormed around him. "X-Evolution...BlackWarGreymon X!" Oberon's armor and weaponry sharpened and became more angular as he entered his X-evolved form. Without a glance back to deter him from his chosen course, Oberon hurled himself into the sky.

The mighty warrior clove through dozens of dragons, and they soon focused all their attention on him, allowing the remaining rebels to escape. Oberon slashed Daehak's armies to pieces in the blink of an eye. His X-evolved form gave him the speed and power to decimate the dragons.

"Hades Force!" he howled, hurling the giant sphere of dark energy into the Dramon Army. Darkness swept over the army, vaporizing dozens of dragons.

The red form of Daehak himself caught Oberon's attention: he was continuing after the rest of the team! Oberon would have none of this. He dropped from the sky with terrifying speed and raced towards Daehak. He struck the Chaosdramon with his more powerful claws and sent the red dragon reeling back.

Daehak snarled and struck back, but Oberon dodged his attack.

"Black Tornado!" he snarled. He spun his body into a twister and speared into Daehak's chest. On any other dragon, the attack would have been fatal, but Daehak's supremely armored body protected him so well, that all Oberon managed to inflict was a small spider-web of cracks. Oberon growled and struck at Daehak's face with his Dragon Crusher. The powerful blow made a long mark across Daehak's left eye, but it was only superficial.

Daehak laughed darkly. "No, little rebel. You die. Chaos Cruncher!" Daehak struck, grabbing Oberon with his booster claw and crushed him into the ground. As soon as Oberon hit the ground, his entire body dissipated into a mass of data particles, which were promptly absorbed by Daehak. The great red dragon then began to glow as he integrated Oberon's X-Antibody into his data.

"X-Evolution...Chaosdramon X!" Daehak's body grew even larger; his booster claw became stronger and more dangerous and his already-large cannons enlarged to near-rediculous size. He turned to his army, "The rebels are trying to escape to the ocean, after them now!"

=====

Ajax and the rebels continued to the end of the sewer system to where they had entered. Ajax had Tharor slung over his shoulder while the others carried Jager and helped the rest of the wounded along. They reached the end of the sewer and raced towards the ocean.

"I don't think he'll be joining us," GigaSeadramon laughed as he and the rest of the Seadramon Unit rose from the ocean. "He had the unfortunate experience of meeting with me."

Ajax turned to take cover in the sewer once again, but Daehak and his armies had caught up to them. Ajax realized that they were trapped; GigaSeadramon by sea and Daehak by land and air. The great knight prepared to resign himself to his fate.

"Vortex Penetrate!" a voice shouted. Something streaked through the air and stabbed into GigaSeadramon. The weapon struck again, hitting Daehak and knocking him to the ground.

Poseidon the Neptunmon rose from the depths. He was accompanied by several Whamon, Vikemon, and Plesiomon. The soldiers of the Oceanic Coalition formed a wall between the Seadramon Unit and the rebels, and all it took was a glance from Poseidon, and Daehak ceased his attack.

A Whamon beached itself and opened its great maw. Ajax led the tired and beaten rebels into the Digimon's body as they finally relaxed and were no longer in danger.

"This isn't over, Poseidon," Daehak swore.

"No, it isn't," Poseidon agreed. "But I have a feeling that you will not enjoy the next meeting we have in the slightest..."

=====

The rebel strike force, or what remained of it, was soon returned to the island fortress where their Leaders and the rest of the rebellion had taken temporary residence. Apollo, Artemis, and Arahon waited for the team expectedly, but when the team emerged from the Whamon, the leaders of the rebellion knew things hadn't gone well.

"We need to get Jager and Tharor immediate medical attention," Ajax stated. A HiAndromon and his three Andromon assistants appeared and took the injured Digimon to the improvised medical unit.

"What happened?" Artemis wondered.

"The mission was doomed from the start," Ajax informed tiredly. "Imego somehow knew about our plan and evacuated the Three Great Dramon."

"Imego?"

"Yeah," Ajax sighed. "He was waiting for us with some of the Dragon Knights. And he reached some new level of power that we weren't equipped to handle."

"What do you mean?" Arahon asked.

"The Paladin Mode," Ajax explained. "He was able to do that," he said while pointing to Tharor and Jager, "to Tharor and Jager while they were in their Ancient forms, and he withstood everything we threw at him."

"First thing's first," Apollo said. "We need to-"

"No," Artemis said firmly. "We tried this your way, now we do things my way. Arahon, did you make any headway with the other kingdoms?"

"The Celestial Sphere was unwilling to support us openly," Arahon answered. "But Seraphos the Seraphimon told me that we did have some support within the Sphere."

A digimon approached Strom offering medical attention. He growled and turned around in response. "Get away from me. Others need it more," he replied coldly.

He took a few paces down the beach before dropping to his knees, punching the sand, and roaring. "DAMN IT! SOME TRAITOR TOLD THEM ABOUT US!! ...And it cost Goliath and Oberon their lives..."

Waves and sand sunk into the deep hole he created and enveloped his claw, which he then tore out of the sand. Strom turned his head and saw Ragna, who was being brought in for aid. The Spinomon shot him a glare, thinking that he could full-well be the traitor.

Just then, something jumped down in front of his vision and obstructed his view. He looked up and saw Braon standing in front of him.

"I heard about the mission... I knew it was a bad idea..." he mumbled to himself. "Are you okay, Strom?"

The Spinomon got to his feet and nodded. "Just fine... Only a bit of a burn... One of the others said that Imego said that there was a spy in our ranks- that's how he knew about us."

"Yes, that's being looked into," the Justimon replied. Braon could see the flurries of differing emotions in Strom's eyes. "You should get some rest, Strom. We'll get him, I promise. Besides, you look like you were run over by a platoon of Machinedramon," he said with a grin.

Ragna saw Strom's gaze and he knew full well what the Spinomon was thinking.

"I'm no traitor," he said. His Silphymon and Devimon forms had DNA Digivolved back into him as they returned to the island, but he still had his wounds. He turned his head away from the Spinomon, hurt that Strom could even think that after Ragna had fought so strongly against Imego. But in the end, they hadn't achieved anything except weakening Imego enough to break his Paladin Mode and he could easily get it back.

"Two of our best fighters killed for nothing!" he roared angrily. The two Guardromon carrying his strecher looked at him, but remained silent. Then Ragna caught sight of Osiris and let out a cry. The Anubismon was incredibly wounded. While he wasn't as badly hurt as Tharor and Jager, the Omni Sword had done a lot of damage. He was just lying there on the strecher with various Digimon gathering around him.

"All of that, all the pain and death. And we did nothing to the Three Great Dramon!" Ragna screamed in rage.

Gapsar's eye twitched, the now Tuskmon was being carried off in a stretcher, his legs were thought to be Majorly Wounded, yet no pain was as Great as the blurred images of his Comrade's death burned into his mind. The Tuskmon shook hiss head, they we're the bravest souls of us all. No medal or rank can be give to those sacrifice themselves to save others. These thoughts we're interrupted by a familiar voice.

"So, the mission was a failure?", it was Corporal Trajan, the first officer of the Rebels Gapsar met that fateful day in the desert, it was Trajan who trained him in modern warfare.

Gapsar replied a bit harshly, but only from what was rumbling through his mind, "There is a traitor among us." the Dinosaur groaned, "A Benadict Arnold eh?" Trajan said with a smirk, "I'll find the Loyalist Scum."
"No," Gapsar, "it's worse than that. Goliath and Oberon gave their lives because of the info the mole handed over."

Trajan's smirk faded into a face of Rage, "WHAT? I SWEAR! I'll will find this rotten scumbag and give him what he deserves! NO ONE DOES THIS TO THE REBELS WITHOUT FACING MY WRATH!" Gapsar listened intently, knowing the Mirage Gaogamon had gone into his more Zealotous mode.
"I know, me and the other Higher Ranking officers will get debriefed on this soon. I WILL tell Apollo and Artemis to put ME in charge of finding the swine, and when I do...heh heh." Trajan bellowed out, as he finished he made a slash in the air with his knife like claws, now pulsating with energy. The sparks danced in the air for a couple of seconds, then faded. Gapsar smiled and nodded, as the Guardomon carried him further from his former commander, even though his extreme loyalty got a bit annoying at times, Gapsar had known Trajan for quite a bit of time, and knew he would find that Traitor.

Rai sat up. He had been lying on a cot in one of the medic rooms. His wounds and bruises had been bandaged up, but they still stung with pain. However, his Golden Armor of Destiny had taken most of the damage for him. If it hadn't been for his armor, he would've been long gone.

Peering over to the cot next to his, he found Karasu, with eyes tightly shut, snoring. Giving the Raven Digimon a rough shove, Rai exclaimed, "Come on, Feather-head! I know you're not asleep!"

"Darn...how can you tell?" inquired the bird, sitting up and rubbing his sore beak, "I thought I was doing a pretty good job pretending to be asleep..."

"Yeah, he got you good!" Rai answered, laughing, "But he got a lucky hit on me! If he hadn't have played dirty, those filthy Dragons would be scraping his sorry bleached butt of the floor right now! Hahahaha!"

"Whatever."

"Are you callin' me a liar?!"

"I ain't callin' you a truther," Karasu responded, lying back down and drifting off to sleep, leaving the hot-headed Rapidmon alone in the medic room. However, his solitude did not last long, for soon a Guardromon entered the room, bringing fresh bandages for the Rapidmon and his friend.

"Oh, you're awake. Good," said the Guardromon, approaching Rai, "Here you go. Fresh bandages. I shall put them on you."

Ajax had since returned to his MedievalGallantmon form, but he still felt the pain from his wounds. Of all the rebels involved in the botched assassination mission, he was perhaps the one least injured. Ajax wasn't sure how that had happened; he faced Imego the longest out of anyone.

He should be the one on the brink of death, not Jager and Tharor.

"We need to save them," Ajax said decisively. "They shouldn't have to suffer for the miscalculations of others." Apollo, Artemis, Arahon, and Braon all nodded their agreement.

"Their digi-cores have been irreparably damaged," the HiAndromon informed. "At present, we don't have the means to save either of them; whatever Imego's attack did to them, we just can't heal them."

"We need to delay their deletion," said Artemis.

"Yes," Apollo agreed. "But there's only one Digimon who can allow such a thing."

Arahon nodded. "Anubis Teth-Adam," he muttered. "The Great Anubismon of the 'Realm Between Life and Death.'"

"How can we reach him?" Ajax asked. "Tell me how and I'll go myself."

"One can't just go and demand something from Anubis Teth-Adam," Arahon answered sadly. "He's a proud being who won't be swayed from his ancient task easily. Getting to his realm is also quite difficult; it involves mastery over the knowledge of death and time."

"So how can we contact him?" Ajax demanded.

"I'll go," Arahon answered. "I can tap into the Alpha-Gain-Force and have it transport me to Teth-Adam's realm. But I don't think the Alpha-Gain-Force will be enough. I need someone who can navigate the 'Realm Between Life and Death.' I need Osiris. As an Anubismon himself, Osiris should be able to navigate the realm and bring us to Anubis Teth-Adam."

"Very well," said Artemis. "I will have someone alert Osiris to these developments. You may leave as soon as he has recuperated enough to navigate Teth-Adam's realm."

Arahon nodded and lifted into the air.

"We have other problems, don't we?" Braon asked.

"Yes, but I didn't want to worry Arahon at the moment," answered Apollo. "We have a traitor in our midst. I have already tasked Trajan the MirageGaogamon with routing out the traitor, but I want you both to keep your eyes open." Ajax and Braon nodded. "This brings us to our next point; we need to find a replacement for Goliath." Apollo turned to Ajax.

"He's dead not twelve hours and you already seek his replacement?" Ajax demanded angrily. "How can you even look yourself in the mirror?"

"Sit down, Ajax," Artemis ordered. "We know this is difficult for you, but consider our position. We need someone to lead in Goliath's stead. We would have chosen Oberon, but he was lost to us as well."

"You can't think that I could lead in his place, do you?" Ajax asked. "I can't. I won't lead."

"We know," said Artemis. "We've chosen his successor already, but we need you to lead regardless."

"What?" Ajax demanded.

"The unit Goliath led; the strike team," Apollo explained. "They need a leader. They were brought together as Goliath's final act, and in their mission a bond formed. I won't see that bond broken, Goliath wouldn't allow it." Ajax wanted to object. "You fear failure; you fear disappointing us. But you are a capable leader. You proved this when you devised the plan that routed Daehak's forces in the jungles. If you fear failure then--to put it simply--do not fail."

Ajax nodded somberly. He stood up, saluted the two Leaders and Commander Braon, and then walked away.

"Ajax," Apollo called out. "When you faced Imego, was he able to match the power of your Crimson Form?"

"Never got the chance to test it," Ajax replied bitterly. "By the time I realized I needed its power, I didn't have the energy left to activate it."

"Perhaps then, not all is lost," said Apollo. Ajax nodded and continued to walk away...

=====

Back in the great forge of the Dramon Empire, Imego stood with the Flamedramon who first crafted the Holy Ring on his arm. He removed the fractured digicore he had taken from Azulongmon and removed the ring as well.

"The problem is," the Flamedramon began. "The power of a single digicore can be depleted. I've adjusted the ring so that it can hold two digicores at the same time. This way, the cores power each other and repair one another if one gets damaged."

Imego took the holy ring back from the Flamedramon and placed it around his arm once again. He closed his eyes and reveled in the vast amount of power that flowed through his body. He held off his transformation for as long as he could, basking in the glow of his own potential.

"Mode Change...Paladin Mode!" Imego called out. He once again donned the white-armored form and grasped the mighty Omni Sword in his hands. "The Dramon Empire had a great victory today," he said out loud. "But I was humiliated; brought down by those insignificant rebels. I must redeem myself."

Imego made his way to the new, temporary palace of the Three Great Dramon.

"Imego," Bahamut the Goldramon greeted. "We are pleased to see you have once again attained your new power."

"Your deeds this day have brought untold glory to the Dramon Empire," said Tiamut the Magnadramon. "For such a glory, we the Three Great Dramon, bestow upon you a new title and station: that of Lord Protector of the Dramon Empire. From now on, you have no equal in the entire Empire, and answer only to us, the Three Great Dramon."

"I am but your humble servant," Imego said with a bow. "My only wish is to serve you and the Empire as best I can."

"And you have served us well," said Krateamut the Megidramon. "Now, Lord Protector Imego, what brings you before us?"

"First I must enquire as to who will take my place as leader of your Air Force," said Imego.

"We have chosen to change the nature of your previous station," said Bahamut. The Air Force shall be led by the Grand Marshal, a warrior of your choosing. The newly formed Navy will be led by the High Admiral, the GigaSeadramon Jormungand."

"I choose Gotungir, the UlforceVeedramon X, as the Grand Marshal of the Air Force," Imego announced.

"A wise decision," said Tiamut. "Bring him before us and we shall bestow upon him his title and a great power to aid him in his new station."

Imego bowed. "I must also make a request. I request to be allowed to redeem myself in the eyes of my Lords and my Empire."

"You have done nothing that warrants redeeming," said Krateamut. "You have served us, the Three Great Dramon, and your Empire well."

"I was humiliated by that small band of rebels," Imego said bitterly. "They brought me low: defeated me. In the eyes of the Empire this is the same as failure, and I must once again prove myself worthy."

"What do you propose to do?" Bahamut asked.

"We must attack the Kingdom of the Celestial Sphere," Imego stated bluntly. The Three Great Dramon stared at him warily, but allowed him to continue his proposal. "As the most powerful of the neutral kingdoms, they must be discouraged from joining with the Rebellion."

"Would an attack not send them on such a path?" asked Tiamut.

"Not if we deal them such a blow that they never recover," explained Imego. "We do not even need to defeat them; we just need to prove--or make them think--that we can. Then I have no doubt that Varodurumon will evacuate the Sphere from the regular plane of the Digital World."

"This is a bold proposition," said Krateamut. "One that we would not consider was anyone else to propose it. But you, Lord Protector Imego, are now our trusted paladin, so we shall take your words into higher consideration."

"Indeed," said Bahamut. "We shall grant you your request. You have our blessings: bring the Kingdom of the Celestial Sphere to its knees. You may bring Gotungir and the Air Force."

Imego bowed his head, smirking to himself as he did, and left the room.

"Is it wise to give Imego such power and rank?" asked Tiamut. "His power may soon come to rival our own. What if he wishes to overthrow us?"

"I doubt such a thing," said Krateamut. "Imego shows complete loyalty to the Dramon Empire and its ideals. We have nothing to worry about."

"Indeed," said Bahamut. "For even if he tries, he is but one, and we are three."

"My Lords," said Daehak as he thundered into their new throne room. "How can I be of service?"

"We have a task for you and the Army, mighty Daehak," said Krateamut. "You shall bring the Army to the lands of the Royal Hive. Decimate them. Bring their leader to his knees; humble him before our might. Make sure that they know what awaits them should they ally themselves with the Rebellion."

"As you will, it shall be done," said Daehak with a bow. He turned and left the room to prepare the Army...

=====

Ajax walked into the medical tent where the members of the strike force--minus Tharor and Jager--were recouperating. He stopped by each of them and made sure they were okay. They were his responsibility now.

"Apollo and Artemis have seen fit to keep this little group together," Ajax announced. "And they've appointed me as the unit's commander and leader. I'm...not to thrilled with this development, but we share a bond forged during battle, and I promise to do my best as your leader." He stood up and glanced over his soldiers. "I won't let you down."

"Neither will we," a voice said.

Two figures strode into the medical tent. One was a powerfully build, red-armored warrior of the Greymon family. The other was a lean, streamlined, blue-armored warrior of the Garurumon line. They were Onaga the EmperorGreymon and Valkur the MagnaGarurumon.

"Meet Onaga and Valkur," Ajax introduced. "They've been assigned to this unit to fill in for Jager and Tharor."

"Tharor was a close friend of mine," said Onaga. "We served together in the Greymon Corps for many years. I share you pain."

"Aye," said Valkur. "Jager and Tharor were among the first that found me after the Dramon Revolution; Onaga and I will not rest until justice has been delivered upon the one who did this to them."

"Fate has brought us together," said Ajax. "And the powers that be have declared for us to remain together until the Dramon Empire has fallen to ash."

"You'll need a name," said Braon as he appeared behind Onaga and Valkur. "All groups of heroes brought together by fate need a name that is theirs and theirs alone."

"We were brought together by vengeance," said Ajax. "Not just for Tharor and Jager, but for the entire Digital World."

"Then that shall be our name," said Onaga.

"What?" asked Ajax.

"The Avengers," Onaga answered.

"Avengers," Ajax whispered, testing how the word rolled off his tongue and echoed through the air. "I like it..."

Rai peered around at the small band of Digimon. Looking over his shoulder, he found that Karasu had slipped up behind him. The bird Digimon leaned close to Rai's ear, which wasn't necessary, as the Rapidmon's ears were very large, and whispered, "Hey, Rai, there's something I want to talk to you about...meet me by the big tree when this meeting's over..."

"Gotcha."

So, Rai thought, pondering their group's new name, The Avengers, eh? I could've come up with something better...but it was pretty good for that newbie, I guess.

As Rai was wrapped up in his own thoughts, Karasu quietly slipped away from the others. He was more of a loner, and preferred to remain unnoticed by everyone else. In addition, he was in no mood to discuss battle plans. Rai would fill him in on anything he missed later.

------------------

Karasu had soon reached his special tree. Lying up in the branches, he turned his sacred amulet over in his claws. The amulet had been given to him by Jijimon, his dearest friend, just before the old Digimon died at the hands of the Dramon Empire.

"The Avengers. I will do that name justice," Karasu said aloud, "I will avenge your death, Jijimon."

Strom chuckled. "'Fate' indeed. Fate has been less than kind to me in the past... and present. Now I'm stuck with a team of slapdash fools who are going to get themselves killed... not to mention possible traitors..." he mumbled to himself very quietly.

Strom slowly walked out of the tent and sat down outside of it. Braon followed him out of the tent, folded his arms and looked at him.

Braon grinned, but his face became serious after a moment. "Strom, why aren't you in the tent going over the tactics, which something that you're particularily good at?"

"I don't feel like it, sir," Strom responded plainly.

"And why not?"

The Spinomon didn't answer. Braon walked so that he faced Strom, but Strom avoided his gaze.

"Is this about Goliath, Oberon, Tharor and Jager?" the Justimon asked.

"It doesn't help..."

"Why are you even with the rebels, Strom? You could have a perfectly fine life back at the Paleozoic Sovereignty without having to worry about all of this."

Strom cringed but remained silent. Braon was growing agitated. "You had better have a good reason why you're not in that tent, Strom, or else-"

The Spinomon interrupted. "Can I trust you to keep a secret?"

"Yes."

Strom sighed. "Okay...You already know about how I was a runner for the Paleozoic Sovereignty and I was tortured by the Dramons, right? Well, it started awhile after I became best friends with a Dinorexmon named Ranney. We were close, but... he eventually jumped me in my sleep and brought me to the Dramons for interrogation on the location of your guy's HQ. Apparently it was because they had his brother. I haven't seen Ranney since. After I was released, I came here to get vengeance... and for a lack of anything else to do. If you can't trust your best friend then I don't know who you can trust," Strom finished, really hoping that no one overheard him.

Braon nodded, sympathetically. "I see... Sorry to hear that. I can see why this traitor stuff is bothering you so much."

"Yeah... I have two suspects in the team I'm in."

Braon sighed. "Strom, whoever you think it is, I'm sure it's not. All of your teammates have proved themselves on the battlefield and I'm sure they're not about to betray any of us. Now why don't you stop being a big, sharp baby and go in the tent?" he said with a friendly grin.